Shark Bay Marine Park was Western Australia's first world heritage listed area. Most visitors are drawn to the Shark Bay World Heritage Area for the chance to befriend some of Monkey Mia's enchanting bottle-nosed dolphins. About seven dolphins are famous for their almost daily ritual of swimming to shore at Monkey Mia's beach resort to be fed (usually twice in the morning) with a few fish under the supervision of several national park rangers.
The many bays and inlets of the marine park are ablaze with multicolored sea life. The turquoise waters are so clear that docile dugongs, manta rays, dolphins and marine turtles are easy to spot. Wildlife cruises, snorkeling and guided 4WD tours to the nearby Francois Peron National Park are the main activities offered. Monkey Mia is just a 30 minute drive northeast of Denham, the main and only town in the Shark Bay area. On the way to Denham visitors can also visit famous Shell Beach, a vast beach made up of tiny white seashells, and the remarkable Hamelin Pool stromatolites – the oldest and largest living fossils in the world.
The Shark Bay region represents a meeting point of three major climatic regions and forms a transition zone between two major botanical provinces-the South West and Eremaean provinces.
The number of species that reach the end of their range is a major feature of the region's flora. Twenty-five per cent of vascular plants (283 species) are at the limits of their range in Shark Bay. Many vegetation formations and plant species are found only in the interzone area.
The area south of Freycinet Estuary contains the unique type of vegetation known as tree heath. There are also at least 51 species endemic to the region and others that are considered new to science. |
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| Feeding the Dolphins at Monkey Mia (©TourismWA) |
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